Isaiah & the Redeemer

I’ve noticed before in 1 Nephi, Chapter 19 that Nephi says that he reads Isaiah specifically to convince his family to believe in the Redeemer. Is he saying that they already believed in a God, in the God of Israel specifically, but not necessarily in His role as Messiah and Redeemer? Lehi preaches about a Messiah that will save the world, and he almost gets killed. A Messiah simply for Israel is good news, however. The different titles that God receives are accepted or rejected based on what that person thinks about God.

So Nephi wants his people to believe in God as a Redeemer. Well, what if they don’t understand that there is a need to redeem anyone or any people? Isaiah makes it clear that Israel has been divided and scattered and needs to be brought back together. Is this why he reads Isaiah?

I did a search this morning for “Redeemer” in the Old Testament. It turns out that of the 18 times that word shows up, 13 of them are in Isaiah! (Here is a link to the search results.) The others are one in Job, two in the Psalms, one in Proverbs, and one in Jeremiah. And the earliest it shows up in Isaiah is chapter 41.